People

Amy Walsh Partner

New York

Amy represents individuals and institutions in government investigations, enforcement actions and prosecutions conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Internal Revenue Service. She negotiates resolutions with government officials, but also tries cases against the government. She is a fierce advocate for her clients, and her work often results in the government declining to bring charges.

Amy was an Assistant United States Attorney for 12 years in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, where she led dozens of investigations and cases on behalf of the U.S. government and supervised several sections within the Office.

Amy has also served as a court-appointed monitor for a global financial institution.

Nicole Walsh Partner

Los Angeles

Nicole guides real estate investment funds, banks, developers and corporate clients through their most intricate real estate deals. With a strong background in corporate finance, she can bridge relevant viewpoints and offer distinct context across a wide range of real estate transactions, such as restructurings, workouts, foreclosures, mortgage and mezzanine financings, construction contracts, joint ventures, acquisitions and dispositions.

She serves as the relationship co-lead for one of our largest real estate clients, Hackman Capital Partners. Nicole also works closely with Sagehall Partners, Westbrook Partners, Local Bounti and Walton Street Capital, and has deep relationships with CoreVest.

Gerard Walsh Partner

Los Angeles

Jerry is particularly recognized for his work in connection with the acquisition, restructuring and realization of distressed debt in the real estate and hospitality markets. Clients seek him out for the most complex distressed debt transactions, including securitized and mezzanine debt intercreditor workouts and the establishment of mezzanine debt lending platforms. Jerry led a multidisciplinary Orrick team in one of the most sophisticated real estate debt transactions that was restructured in 2013, involving a series of complex transactions and multi-state litigation. Recognized as a key lawyer in the 2022 Real Estate category, a client told The Legal 500 US that Jerry is “smart, responsive and extraordinarily helpful and collaborative.”

In addition, Jerry leads Orrick’s hospitality practice and advises global opportunity, hotel and pension funds and advisors in connection with the acquisition, repositioning and disposing of hotel portfolios throughout the United States. He advises on acquisitions, joint ventures, financing, rebranding, disposition and negotiation of hotel management agreements, shared services and amenities agreements, and franchise agreements, including termination of hotel management and franchise agreements involving brands such as Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, St. Regis, Renaissance, Luxury Collection, Westin, Kimpton and other Sheraton/Starwood brands.

Jerry's representative clients include Cisco Systems, Inc., Cornerstone Advisers LLC, JMA Ventures, LACERA, The Newhall Land and Farming Company, Walton Street Capital, and Westbrook Partners.

Before joining Orrick, Jerry was a partner with a magic circle firm and chairman of the real estate group of a prominent national law firm.

Ashley Walter Partner & Chief Sustainability Officer

Seattle

As Orrick’s Chief Sustainability Officer, he also oversees Orrick's strategic sustainability initiatives. Ashley focuses on developing innovative methods of supporting clients in achieving ESG objectives, including designing novel systems to manage supply chain risk; forming and guiding management-level ESG Steering Committees; and helping clients address the ESG requirements of major customers by engaging with those customers on our clients’ behalf.

Ashley is a co-founder and past chair of the Corporate Social Responsibility Law Committee of the ABA Business Law Section, has co-chaired the Practising Law Institute's annual ESG program for the last four years, and is heavily involved in ESG initiatives at Stanford Law School, where has served as a moderator at the Stanford Directors' College, has lectured on ESG at business law courses, has taught the course “Corporate Social Responsibility,” and will be teaching the course “Law and Governance in ESG Strategy” in the spring of 2025. Prior to Orrick, Ashley founded the corporate social responsibility practice at a Silicon Valley-based law firm.

How I help clients:

• Customer ESG Engagement: Engaging with clients’ major customers in response to ESG inquiries or requirements
• Supply Chain Risk: Developing responsible sourcing systems for high-risk supply chains
• ESG Goal Management: Advice regarding retaining, modifying or withdrawing ESG goals
• ESG Steering Committees: Forming and guiding management-level ESG Steering Committees
• ESG Due Diligence: Conducting ESG due diligence with a focus on post-closing program building
• Quarterbacking Compliance: Creating and advancing a project plan for regulatory compliance, including working with third-party consultants

Jonas Wang Senior Associate

Washington, D.C.

Jonas has represented clients in the technology sector in federal and state courts across the country, with argument experience in the federal courts of appeals.

Before joining Orrick, Jonas served as a law clerk to Judge Beverly B. Martin of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.  A graduate of Yale Law School, Jonas was an Articles and Essays Editor for the Yale Law Journal and a member of the Veterans Legal Services Clinic.

Jonas previously served as a staff attorney at a leading nonprofit and litigated in federal district and appellate courts challenging adverse effects from criminal fines and fees.

Martha Wang Managing Associate

Beijing

Martha regularly represents Chinese and international clients in cross-border M&A, private equity investments and financings, joint ventures, foreign direct investments and other compliance matters.

She has represented clients from a broad range of industries, including TMT, financial services, healthcare, consumer products, energy, manufacturing, etc.

In addition, she has experience in handling initial public offerings, debt and equity securities offerings, pre-IPO investments, as well as advising on restructuring, employment, antitrust, and general corporate matters.

Lu (Echo) Wang Senior Associate

Beijing

Her practice focuses on advising clients on mergers and acquisitions, private equity, capital markets and SEC compliance matters.

John Wang Partner

San Francisco

John advises issuers, borrowers and underwriters on financings for higher education, solid waste disposal (including waste-to-energy facilities), and utilities (including water, wastewater and energy facilities).  He actively advises clients in such financings on a national basis, including in California, Hawaii, Guam, Nevada and Texas.

John has been recognized as a leading lawyer by multiple organizations, including as a Chambers USA, Band 2 attorney for California Public Finance, and as one of California's top 50 development lawyers by The Daily Journal.

Xiang Wang Partner

Beijing; New York

Xiang is a Guiding Expert of the China Overseas IP Dispute Response & Guidance Center.

He also serves several consultancy roles for local regulatory authorities, including as IP Guiding Expert of Shenzhen IP Protection Center; IP Guiding Expert of Zhejiang Province IP Protection Center; IP Consultant of Technology Innovation Bureau of Nanjing Jiangbei New Area Management Committee (Jiangsu Province); Expert of IP Dispute Investigation and Appraisal of Foshan Market Supervision and Administration Bureau (Guangdong Province); Expert for Overseas IP Protection and Assistance of Foshan Intellectual Property Bureau (Guangdong Province); and Guiding Expert of Shantou Overseas IP Center and Shunde Enterprise IP Protection Center (Guangdong Province).

Dr. Wang is an arbitrator of Beijing Arbitration Commission and Beijing International Arbitration Center.

Xiang has extensive experience in assisting local and foreign-based multinational companies with all aspects of their IP rights in the U.S. and China, including IP litigation and arbitration, patent infringement, industrial espionage, trade secret misappropriation, copyright and trademark infringement, ITC Sec. 337 investigations, patent office proceedings including inter partes reviews (IPR), IP due diligence and portfolio counseling, technology export control, mass torts and product liability, securities litigation, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and other investigations and compliance. These matters have implicated a vast array of technologies, from software and electronics to renewable energy and medical devices as well as agricultural and building materials, to name just a few.

Xiang also works extensively on cybersecurity investigations and data privacy compliance matters for both Chinese and international clients.

Xiang has been particularly active in Chinese state-owned enterprises related U.S. litigation. Clients turn to his strategic and innovative advice thanks to his in-depth understanding of their business needs and political risks. Clients appreciate that he “understood the environment in the China legal system and can give nuanced advice”.

Xiang has developed the region’s premier IP practice based on his reputation as one of the few IP lawyers who has a doctorate in electrical and computer engineering, a Juris Doctor, a Chinese Certificate of Laws, and admission to practice law in New York, Indiana and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Due to its success in patent disputes in the United States and China, involving both foreign and Chinese companies, Orrick IP team was exclusively featured in a documentary film “Patent Wars” by the China Central Television (CCTV).

Xiang is highly regarded for his practical legal advice that results from more than ten years of experience at medical and electronic device businesses before becoming a lawyer. He also has received four U.S. medical-technology patents in his name.

Kelli Ward Associate

San Francisco

Kelli's current practice consists of securities, employment, antitrust, and complex litigation.

She comes to the legal field with extensive experience in team management and film and television, having worked at the top-tier Hollywood talent agency - WME - for a decade before practice.  

Kelli maintains a robust pro bono practice, which includes reproductive rights and immigration work.

Scott Ward Partner

Washington, D.C.

Scott has spent years working in the political arena on both the federal and state level, promoting political and policy agendas via a national network of elected officials, policy makers and outside influence groups.

He has comprehensive experience in federal and state campaign finance, ethics, lobbying and compliance law, and assists clients in all aspects of compliance with rules related to engaging in the political process.

Prior to joining Orrick, he was the President and General Counsel of the Republican State Leadership Committee, a $30 million national political organization focused on electing Republicans to the state offices of Attorney General, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, and State Legislator. Under his leadership, the Republican State Leadership Committee made historic gains in the 2010 elections, netting a record 700 plus state legislative seats, flipping 20 state chambers to Republican control as well as netting six Attorneys General, seven Secretaries of State and three independently elected Lt. Governors.

Scott was previously in private practice with Holtzman Vogel Josefiak PLLC and Arent Fox LLP in the areas of Political law and Litigation. He advised numerous IRS § 527 political organizations, federal and state political action committees, federal and state candidates, state parties, associations, corporations and non-profits in all aspects of fundraising, organization, compliance, disclosure and reporting under federal and state campaign finance laws.

He was General Counsel and served on the Executive Committee of the District of Columbia Republican Party from 2004 to 2012. Prior to his legal career, Scott served as Field Director for Americans for a Republican Majority Political Action Committee (ARMPAC) and worked on the majority staff of the U.S. House Budget Committee for Chairman John Kasich.

Montana Ware Senior Associate

Austin

Montana primarily represents emerging growth companies, venture capital funds and other strategic investors in a wide array of corporate matters, including early and late-stage venture funding rounds, formation and corporate governance, securities issuances and mergers and acquisitions.  Montana's practice spans commercial industries, with significant experience representing frontier technology companies and "dual use" companies such as those in the defense, nuclear and space industries. 

Prior to practicing law, Montana served in the U.S. Air Force.

Select engagements Montana has advised on include:

• Represented Stripe in its $6.5 billion Series I financing
• Represented Radiant Nuclear in its $12.6 million Series A, $40 million Series B and $160 million Series C financings
• Represented Castelion in its $14.2 million Series Seed and $100 million Series A financings
• Represented Firehawk Aerospace in its Series C financing
• Represented Supabase in its $30 million Series A, $80 million Series B and $200 million Series C financings
• Represented Speakeasy Labs ("Speak") in its Series A, Series B (and follow-on) and $78 million Series C financings
• Represented Solugen in its $350 million Series C and $200 million Series D financings
• Represented Zeno Power in its $45 million Series B financing
• Represented Merama in its $225 million Series B and $80 million Series B follow-on financings and its $45 million Series C financing
• Represented Next Insurance in its $250 million Series C financing, $250 million Series D financing and $250 million Series E financing
• Represented Coatue Management in its investment in the $100 million Series B financing of Mercury Technologies
• Represented D1 Capital Partners in its investment in the $450 million Series D financing of Anduril
• Represented Inspire Semiconductor in its $2.5 million Series A financing and acquisition of Greenfield Acquisition (TSX:GAC.P), a publicly-traded SPAC, by way of a reverse merger
• Represented Codecademy in its $525 million acquisition by SkillSoft (NYS: SKIL), a New Hampshire based provider of educational software
• Represented Gym Class in its $8 million Series Seed financing and in collaborative licensing deal with the NBA
• Represents Squadra Ventures, Decisive Point and other venture investors on defense and frontier technology investments

*Please note: Montana’s experience includes that prior to joining Orrick.